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ElectricVehicles


Toyota to launch battery electric vehicle in 2012, fuel cell in 2015

Bob Carter, group vice president and general manager of the Toyota brand, came to Detroit on Monday to have lunch with some local media. Among the topics of discussion at the gathering were Toyota's plans for zero emissions vehicles. digg_url = 'http://digg.com/autos/Toyota_To_Launch_Battery_Electric_Vehicles_In_2012'; Since last January, Toyota has shown two different plug-in battery powered concepts, the FT-EV and the FT-EV II, both of which were small city cars. Carter confirmed that Toyota would introduce a battery electric car in ... Read more →

Hola! Renault-Nissan signs electric vehicle MOU with Barcelona; considers making batteries in France Sebastian Blanco

Barcelona's green transportation options have recently expanded to include rental bikes and hybrid buses. A new memorandum of understanding between Barcelona and the Renault–Nissan Alliance ...

Daimler launches €600 million small car investment, A-Class BEV in 2010 Sam Abuelsamid

After at least two years of trying to determine what it was going to do about its next-generation Mercedes-Benz A and B-class compacts, Daimler has announced that it will commit €600 million ...

SunPods make solar electric vehicle charging quick and easy (to install) Sebastian Blanco

While solar panels are not yet efficient enough to plop down on an electric vehicle's roof and charge as you go, the idea of powering an EV with the sun is tremendously appealing. A new system ...

GM's Hybrid/EV engineering director Bob Kruse resigns Sam Abuelsamid

Bob Kruse is going freelance. Kruse has been executive director of global vehicle engineering for hybrids, electric vehicles and batteries at General Motors since early 2008. He has overseen the teams ...

Debate rages over whether to extend HOV-lane exemptions for hybrids in CA 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

Besides the potential feeling of environmental superiority, one of the great benefits to having a hybrid in California has been the availability of a magic little sticker set for a vehicle's rear bumper and fender. The "Access OK" tags have allowed its possessors to cruise in the carpool lanes ...

Shai Agassi says EVs will be cheaper than ICE cars... sort of 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

We are all familiar with the technical issues facing the developers of electric cars, namely energy density and durability. However, the biggest problem likely to affect the mainstream adoption of EVs is cost. In many respects EVs, are mechanically simpler than ICE cars and should be cheaper to ...

What kind of sound does a LEAF make as it descends? 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

While advocates have long heralded a reduction in noise pollution (in addition to lowered air pollution) as an advantage of electric vehicles, not everyone is convinced that silent cars are a good thing. We use our senses to navigate through life and when one or more of them are diminished, ...

How can we "refuel" electric vehicles today and tomorrow? 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

Among the many claimed advantages of electric vehicles are the ability to "refuel" your vehicles at home, never visiting a gas station again. In principle, the only thing you need to "fuel" an EV is a working plug. However, in life, few things ever turn out to be as simple as they might appear ...

Frankfurt 2009: Volvo reveals battery-powered C30 [w/VIDEO] 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

We were already aware that Volvo has been working on a plug-in hybrid version of its compact C30 for some time with the intent of introducing a production model in 2012. In Frankfurt this week, Ford's Swedish outpost also showed off a full battery electric version of the hatchback. Volvo has ...

Frankfurt 2009: all plugs and hybrids, no hydrogen 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

It's probable that, somewhere in the Frankfurt Messe this week, there are hydrogen-powered concept vehicles. From the headlines, though, it's clear that the world's automakers showing off their wares at the Frankfurt Motors Show are taking some time off from promoting the hydrogen fuel cell car ...

Frankfurt 2009: Audi e-tron is red outside, nice inside 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

The Audi e-tron concept has a few good things going for it on the outside, like lustrous red paint, some wicked cool taillights, and... well... maybe something else that's escaped us. Sadly, those things are overcome by the chrome baleen job for the front and rear grilles, the ...

OEMs go all out to defend fuel cells... but hide hydrogen angle 1 month ago on Autoblog Green

When you're down and out, that's when you find out who your real friends are. While there are calls for a more grassroots approach to hydrogen infrastructure development, the real pushers are the big automakers and the government. And, now that H2 funding is under attack but also back in the ...

Seattle electric vehicle advocates ready for new charging infrastructure, federal investment 2 months ago on Autoblog Green

When Nissan announced the cities where the first 5,000 Nissan Leafs would be sold – Tennessee, Oregon, San Diego, Seattle and the Phoenix/Tucson region in Arizona – it picked those areas for their likely high rates of electric vehicle adoption. The local Seattle news site Seattle PI ...

Where Toyota is today on pure electrics, plug-in hybrids and the like 2 months ago on Autoblog Green

We've heard from people who know that, behind the scenes, Toyota is moving quickly on the path to bring plug-in hybrid vehicles to market. Publicly, though, the company is taking a slow, methodical and sometimes skeptical approach to cars with cords. After all, they just spent years teaching us ...

London Mayor Boris Johnson commits to only buying EVs 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

London mayor Boris Johnson is speaking out again and this time has publicly committed to never buying another car powered by an internal combustion engine. Apparently, going for a test drive in a Tesla Roadster was enough to convince the mayor that electric cars truly are the future of ...

Nissan to begin retail sales of 5,000 Leaf EVs next year in major U.S. markets 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Nissan is wasting little time in planning for the release of its recently-announced Leaf electric car. Perhaps the reason details of the car's U.S. launch were so slim at launch is because Nissan was waiting for the official announcement of the Obama administration's $2.4 billion investment ...

Tales of woe from the electric car frontier, MINI E edition 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

We've heard the stories about the charging problems with BMW's MINI E lease program and understand that paying $850 a month for one of these electric cars doesn't appeal to everyone. Still, the issues that some early adopters are dealing with with these EVs are pretty dramatic: the car going ...

Report: Nissan Qazana and Nuvu could join EV lineup 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

The new Nissan EV that is debuting this weekend is just the first of a whole series of electrically-driven vehicles from the Japanese automaker. Among the future additions to the lineup may be a production crossover based on the Qazana concept that we saw at the Geneva Motor Show last March. ...

At Witz' End - scoping out magazine coverage of electric vehicles 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

With so much information (and disinformation) available on the Web, does anyone read magazines any more? Most are struggling to retain both readers and advertisers, and many are going upside down. In the specialized area of auto magazines, there are still plenty of good examples in many flavors, ...

Energy company Fortum, Mitsubishi to promote EVs in Scandinavia 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Mitsubishi is partnering with energy company Fortum to promote the use of electric vehicles in Sweden and Finland by showing off the new iMiEV in those countries. Fortum generates and distributes electricity and heat in Scandinavia and the Baltic region. As an electricity provider, Fortum is ...

MINI E survives first fender bender 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

MINI E - Click above for high-res image gallery The first accident we've heard of that involved a MINI E resulted in a dent in the rear hatch and not much else. The fender bender – which took place at low speeds and was apparently the fault of a large white van behind the all-electric MINI ...

MSNBC: Early electric car adopters are the "lunatic fringe" 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Ever wonder about your friend who's been converting an old Ranger to battery power? He's a nut. Or the lady who runs Electric Cars Are For Girls? Off her rocker. This is according to MSNBC, which wrote recently that electric cars have, until recently, been the domain of the "lunatic fringe." ...

Sure swappable batteries would help EV adoption, but are they practical? 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Battery swapping is controversial subject in the realm of electric vehicles. Many EV advocates favor the concept, but aside from Renault-Nissan almost no other automaker is supporting the concept at this point. A new study conducted by University of California economist Thomas Becker projects ...

Officially, Official: Mercedes to produce electric SLS gullwing 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Mercedes-Benz has officially confirmed the rumors that have been floating around in recent days – it will build an electrically powered version of its upcoming SLS gullwing coupe! The EV version of the SLS will drive all four wheels by means of an individual motor for each corner. It will not ...

MINI explains the drop in estimated range for MINI E 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

Those paying close attention might have noticed that as MINI USA has been delivering battery-powered MINI Es in recent weeks, the range estimate is being quoted as 100 miles. Last November, when we first saw and drove the MINI E, the range was estimated at 156 miles. When we actually drove the ...

REPORT: BMW unlikely to produce diesel M-cars until U.S. embraces oil-burners 3 months ago on Autoblog Green

In recent months, AMG, the high performance gurus at Mercedes-Benz, have hinted at some future plans for reducing CO2 emissions including hybrids and possible diesel engines. Similarly, Audi has built the high-performance Q7 V12 TDI and has been racing diesel sports cars since 2006. BMW's M ...

Seattle mayor wants his city to be on bleeding edge of EVs 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

Seattle mayor Greg Nickels is a fan of electric vehicles and wants his constituents to feel the same way. In recent months, the Pacific Northwest city has signed a deal with Nissan to be one of the first locations to get its upcoming electric vehicles and Nickels wants to rapidly build out an ...

Redefining "e" mail: Japan Post to start testing 40+ electric vehicles 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

When the price of oil was soaring last summer Japan Post said it would switch its fleet over to electric vehicles as soon as possible. It's not a little over a year later and this change is starting to take place. By the end of July, Japan Post should have started 5-year lease programs for 20 ...

Korean e-Zone electric car to be manufactured in Southeast U.S.? 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

If any car screams "Alabama!" it's the e-Zone electric car pictured above, right? The quirky low speed vehicle is a project of CT&T Co. Ltd, a South Korean company, and might be built in the Heart of Dixie in the next few years. CT&T wants to build a variety of vehicles for the U.S. ...

Columnist: electric vehicle hype needs to be tempered 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

Is the Detroit News becoming a home for anti-electric vehicle advocates? Last week, the News published a mostly confusing article by Manny Lopez that criticized the DOE loan that Tesla received. Another column, this one by Neil Winton, is titled, "Electric cars attract hype, but reality is less ...

Nissan issues update on "Green Plan 2010", EVs progressing, AT diesel coming to Japan 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

A couple of years back, Nissan announced its Green Program 2010 which was a comprehensive plan to reduce the energy consumption and emissions of both its vehicles and operations. The automaker has just issued an update on its progress so far with the with the program, and things are moving ...

Officially, official: Nissan gets $1.6B DOE loan to build EVs, batteries in Tennsessee 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

Nissan has just announced that the Department of Energy has approved its request for a $1.6 billion low interest loan under the ATVM program. The money will be used to update the Smyrna, TN factory to build up to 150,000 battery electric vehicles and 200,000 lithium ion battery packs annually. ...

Better Place looks to Fiat-Chrysler for its next partnership 4 months ago on Autoblog Green

- After Better Place launched a couple of years ago, it quickly announced a partnership with the Renault-Nissan alliance for a network of charging and battery exchange stations in Israel and, later, Denmark. These were to be used by electric cars from the Franco-Japanese automakers. Since then, ...

Electric vehicle "glut" might be coming, so watch these five companies 5 months ago on Autoblog Green

Here's an interesting concept: too many electric cars. While even the most optimistic EV proponents don't see electric cars making a huge dent in the number of traditional ICE vehicles any time soon, a powertrain analyst for J.D. Power and Associates, thinks that there soon (within the next decade) ...

$15,600 the sweet spot for electric cars in Japan 5 months ago on Autoblog Green

It's a hard target to hit, but if full-speed electric cars were available today for 1.5 million yen (about $15,600), most average Japanese car buyers would be willing to shell out the money to get one. A new Reuters survey of 882 people found that somewhere between 1.5 million and 2 million yen ...

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